“Why do we have to spend so much for our child’s birthday? He won’t even remember it anyway.”

This point, upon further introspection, has some truth into it. And because it literally goes against everything I stand / work for in Party Magic (if everyone believed the dad, I would have no job!), I thought about it some more. And the answer goes something like this:

Because of the Internet and the great technological advances we’ve experienced lately, we now live in a world of digital abundance. And whatever is abundant, approaches free (or close to it). We can download songs for free, download free e-books, and even watch great quality shows for a fraction of its price 5 years ago (Netflix).

So in a world of abundance, what is valuable?

The answer is: human attention and time.

This is an incontrovertible fact, because no matter what we do or invent, there will always be 24 hours in a day.

One can also argue that an enlightened form of human attention is experience. And you can expect (in fact, I would bet my name on this), that as we move on to the future, the price of experience will continue to increase (weddings, anyone?).

Now here’s a question I’d like to throw back to you:

How would you value this experience?

Welcome to Liam’s Hundred Acre Wood.

THAT ENGLISH GARDEN LOOK

What makes a great party?

I say that a great party makes people forget that they are in a function room, a hall, or a tent, and makes them feel as if they are transported to a different place.

One of the guests remarked during the party that it felt like she was having brunch in England.

This is exactly when the magic happens!

Another reason why I find this event magical is because it has that perfect combination of being elegant, classy, or “adult-y”, and fun, whimsical, or “kiddie”. In my opinion, this is where most stylists can get things wrong: either their parties are too loud, colorful and kiddie, or it’s too serious, minimalist, or too elegant (in other words, it looks more like a wedding than a children’s party).

The best parties are the ones that are stylish to the eyes but doesn’t make you forget that you are still in a child’s party.

THE HUNDRED ACRE WOOD CONCEPT

Some of you might find the characters in these photos familiar. That is because we are celebrating the birthday of Liam, the little brother of dear Rafa, who I blogged about it in Rafa’s Day In The Park.

Not all of the credit for this party belongs to me, as the concept of “Hundred Acre Wood” was the idea of my client, mommy Lorce. Being an architect and designer, Lorce has always had her own ideas of how her party would look like. And intuitively she knew that a classic Winnie the Pooh theme would meld perfectly well with an outdoor garden venue. Knowing this, we’ve already won half the battle.

To be young and carefree: Winnie and friends greet Christopher Robin as he arrives in Hundred Acre Wood

As a party concept, a classic Pooh is a wonderful theme to work with. If you study the artwork, the drawings and color are soft and romantic, almost impressionistic. In a world of high-production computer graphics and 3D images, I think that 2D sketches and artwork like these will remain freshly appealing to everyone. [Read more…]

After about 4 years of event styling and literally hundreds of parties (we are about several parties shy of 400), one would think that the Party Magic team and I are finding our jobs easier.

The truth:

It’s actually getting harder.

Why so?

I think it all has to do with humanity’s endless fascination with the new and the different. Even after years and piles of various themes under my belt, my clients never fail to surprise me with the originality of their ideas.

In other words,

My clients’ imaginations run faster than my ability to get used to their ideas.

In a sense, William Shatner perfectly captured Party Magic’s ultimate mission when he said,

“To Boldly Go Where No Man Has Gone Before”

How better to describe our aim when we seek to transform venues and events?

Which leads me perfectly to today’s discussion of a recent party I styled, the very uniquely entitled, Philipp Linus: The Intergalactic Peacekeeper!

Party Magic’s first ever Star Trek party

SPACE: THE FINAL FRONTIER

At Party Magic, our aim is simple, but definitely not easy.

We want the guests to feel as if they were magically transported to a different realm when they enter our parties.

For a Star Trek party, I knew I had to step things up a notch. And what better way to make that first impression by creating your own solar system on the ceiling?

Welcome to the Linus A Star Cluster, found under the roof of Decagon at Silver City ;p

View from up top at Linus’ birthday: a truly astronomical sight

Welcome to the bridge of the USS Enterprise

Sab, my client, came to me with the very strong idea that she wanted Star Trek for her theme. The reasons for the choice are not at all aesthetic (ie, a space party would look awesome, etc) but rather runs more deeply. Before her current job, Sab worked as a humanitarian doing peacekeeping efforts around the world. So you would imagine her fascination with Star Trek and the show’s undercurrents of:

the pull of the unknown and exploration

cultural and racial inclusion of all types of people / species

technology and how man has progressed with the Scientific Method

These are the things that matter to me personally: what does a theme stand for? What emotions should a styled party evoke?

Some might see this shot differently, but for me it captures Earth as our beautiful home, and how solitary we (currently) are in the space of the vast universe. But who knows what the future will bring?

A few weeks ago, my best friend in the world, Nikki (who also happens to be my sister), uttered vows that changed her life forever. Yes, she got married! If any of you were wondering why I haven’t been blogging lately, this was the reason: apparently part of the maid of honor’s duties involved styling the reception!

Never one to back down from a challenge, the Party Magic team (or in this case, just me and my husband, with help from my wonderful two older brothers) took on styling Nikki’s wedding.

What do you think? Is it time to set up shop abroad?

One of the sad things that came out of Nikki’s emigration to New Zealand was that it spelled the end for Simply Paris Philippines. In a sense, Simply Paris was my baby too as I was there with Nikki from the very start. However, for every door that closes, another one opens, and this time, the door that opened seems to be a lot bigger! Nikki has now started her own Auckland-based baking shop, Sugarpuff Pastry.

Congratulations to Nikki and my new brother-in-law Kenny!

HUNTER’S LUMBERJACK PARTY

Today I am excited to talk about a party that I’ve been planning to showcase for some time now. Welcome to Hunter’s Preppy Lumberjack Party!

Having a kid named Hunter definitely narrows down the choice of themes for a party. But I decided that the “preppy” element was very much suited as a 2nd “layer” to the overall theme. And the reason for this was simple. You see, I’ve known and have been friends with my client, mommy Kim, for quite some time, and I’m telling you, she is the epitome of style and proper:

Mommy Kim, Daddy Bon, and Hunter, the King of the Jungle

See what I mean? These three make a picture perfect family!

By the way, this was our setup for the photo-op area. As a principle, photo op areas should be a.) near / semi-near the entrance to the venue, such that it should be one of the first scenes that guests see, and b.) should create a strong impact to establish the general mood:

If you could think of a single moment in your life which had the most impact on you, what would it be? It could be perhaps the day you received your first bonus paycheck, the day you bought your first car, or perhaps the day you got married.

For me, it happened November of 2012: the day I became a mother.

For that single, magical moment, I brought another human being into life. Suddenly it seemed that the world had changed (or I changed and the world stayed the same; it was hard to tell). This beautiful, sweet, and unbelievably frail creature came from inside me. How could that happen? Any learned scientist could tell you about the sperm, ovaries, and fertilization, but I knew deep in my bones that this was not something that could be broken down into formulae or by the laws of biology. In short, it was a miracle.

And I knew that things would never be the same again.

When I get to do parties, I feel lucky because I get to relive this singular feeling again and again, vicariously, through my clients. But when I think of a mother’s love for her child, one person comes foremost in my mind: my client Jen.

The look of a mother’s love: Jen and Jaime

At first I was a bit nervous about Jaime’s party, as it involves a theme I consider to be quite challenging to style: Minecraft. However, Jaime is currently into the game, and this theme was a personal request of his, so as they say, the customer is always right!

Although every child is special, Jaime is truly an exceptional boy. Besides being a delightfully boisterous kid, Jaime enjoys the wonderful distinction of being the kid with the most birthday parties ever styled by Party Magic: 3 parties, to be exact!

As somebody who has literally been there, I’ve had the privilege of watching Jaime grow to be the wonderful boy that he is now. It’s every parent’s ultimate pleasure to watch their child grow and evolve:

Jaime at 2 years old (look at those moves!)

Jaime at 3 years old in his Star Wars Party

And….Jaime at the very full age of 4!

HOW DO YOU PULL OFF A MINECRAFT PARTY?

The difficulty in doing a Minecraft party is obvious: how in the world would you make a styling aesthetic out of pixelated blocks?

One answer I had to that question was…hang actual blocks on the ceiling!

Another thing I love about styling is how the most seemingly simple items (like these green rectangles) can become a wonderful design element, if placed and arranged the right way and in the right quantity.

These blocks make for great framing devices, whether upfront:

Or even in long shots of guests!

If you’ve been wondering about who took these amazing photos, it is none other than Krissy and her wonderful team at Little People Photography.

I know that I’ve been throwing accolades to two photographers since last year, but that doesn’t really mean that they are the only good ones out there. In fact, I believe that Little People Photography is a strong, solid choice for any mom out there looking for someone who can capture memories!

Specifically, I love how Little People modulated the lighting on Jaime’s photos, making it not too bright, but not too dark either:

Jaime’s Photo op section: enter the world of Minecraft

But even more priceless are these delightfully candid moments that capture the essence of Jaime and his relationship with his parents:[Read more…]

The whole concept didn’t come out as, hey wait a sec, wouldn’t it be nice to do an all-white party? This is because Cara more or less knew what she wanted from day 1.

Romantic, dreamy, clean, all-white.

As with any of Party Magic‘s other parties, I believe it’s a mixture of the “big” as well as the “little” things that make a great party. In other words, small details are just as important as the large props. One example are these detailed “fortune-cookie” shapes that the Party Magic team and I assembled into string cascades:

So why do I say that it took a special person like Cara to pull this off? To explain, after Cara studied in Central Saint Martins College of Art and Design, she came back to Manila to start up her own custom bridal wear shop, the eponymous label Cara Kho Atelier. As a bridal wear designer, Cara loves all things elegant, clean, and ethereal.

Which brings me to my main point:

I believe parties turn magical when they become the physical expressions of a client’s inner aesthetic or artistry.

This can be evident even from the very beginning of the event, while guests enter the scene:

Once guests pass through the gate, I decided it would be great if we could place rows upon rows of white and silver balloons:

This turned out to be a great move, as it was THE PERFECT photo opportunity for Cara, Hailey, and Harold (Cara’s husband)!

Once again, Little Heartbeat deserves a second round of applause here for these WINNING shots. I absolutely love how this hallway scene turned out. The waterfall of ribbons offered the perfect scene to cast that dreamy look.

Another (unusually) nice scene to take photos in was the dessert table. Lately I’ve been experimenting with a more modern, organic approach to the classic balloon arch, so here’s what we came up with:[Read more…]

Sometimes we are so preoccupied with the fantastical and aspirational that we fail to appreciate the things that are right under our noses. Take, for example, choosing party themes. Who would have thought to do this type of party:

In my so-far 3 and a half years of styling, no one asked to do this type of a party. But yes, that’s right. Party Magic just did a Filipino Fiesta party!

Why “Ate Cady” and not just plain “Cady”? Well, I found out that “Ate Cady” is Cady’s grandma’s very special term of endearment for her beloved granddaughter.

One reason that I think people are so hesitant to do this type of party revolves around our preconceptions about our own country. For some, Filipino-themed parties might come off as dull, typical, or just plain old ordinary.

But don’t you find it odd how the French are proud of their unique language, the Americans extol their values of liberty and justice, and the Chinese tout their culture which was developed and preserved over thousands of years, but we Filipinos seem to lack anything to say about our own culture? We seem to more often look outward rather than inward.

When I heard that Giselle, my client, wanted to do a theme revolving around Filipino culture, I thought it was the brightest idea I’ve ever heard.

One of the things I wanted to do almost immediately was to create jeepney centerpieces like the one shown below:

There are so many things in this type of theme that can go wrong, but people fail to realize that there are also so many things that can go right, given the right vision and execution.

For example, the ceiling (see picture above). Since fiesta is equated to a barrage of bright colors , there were a of thing happening: multi-colored bunting flags, bright yellow and orange drapes, as well as those streamers that you’d normally see on the streets of the metro (our version had Talk ‘N Text streamers!). To neutralize all these colors, I wanted to do something cleaner for the hanging lanters: all of them should be white.

The results are undeniable: these white lanterns acted as a sort of “blanket” that effectively lessens all the noise of color happening above it. It also provides the guests with a cleaner, “styled” aesthetic.

White lanterns blanket the venue of Cady’s Birthday

Besides the jeepney centerpiece, we also did a sorbetero centerpiece for some of the other tables:

What is a determining element of every Filipino party? Lechon, of course!

Although I have to warn you: this is a real lechon. It is actually Cady’s birthday cake! Isn’t that something!

Cady’s birthday cake isn’t of the normal variety: it looks like a lechon! The ones who made it? None other than Tazzy Cakes!

Cady’s stage was set up with Cady’s Jeepney:

A key factor in making this theme a success are the details. I had to come up with a lot of graphic work and posters, such as the Coca-Cola banner and the Sangguniang Kabataan signage in the photo below: [Read more…]

For any of you who have watched anything Disney in the past few years (practically everyone I suppose!), you might have come across these cute, little critters Disney calls “Tsum Tsum”. It’s basically all the famous Disney characters, magically transformed into these squat, circular, and elongated pieces of stuffed toys:

“Tsum Tsum” is derived from the Japanese word tsumu, which means “to stack”. This stacking feature is the central characteristic of the Tsum Tsum characters, thus their elongated shapes.

Well, for today’s blog post, I am happy to unveil Party Magic’s very first Tsum Tsum party, celebrating Jack Jack’s first birthday!

The thing I love about my job is that I get to create things that I love, week in week out. It’s no different for Jack Jack’s Tsum Tsum party. In fact, this party is even more special for me, as both my daughters love Tsum Tsum!

And its also special for Jaja, my client and Jack Jack’s mom, since her father-in-law fell in love with Tsum Tsum while playing the game Line: Disney Tsum Tsum!

And whenever I am in love, I just can’t help but over-deliver to my clients, sometimes (much to the shock of my husband), to the point that we go way over our budget…

A large 3D Dale (from Chip and Dale) Tsum Tsum!

For example, I kind of went overboard and made a total of 20 Tsum Tsum characters, some of them in 3D. There’s that cute 3D Dale (from Chip and Dale) in the above photo. We had to squeeze in most of them on the stage:

While we moved the rest in the photo-op:

An Olaf Tsum Tsum in the middle of Jack Jack’s carnival tent!

Take a look at that Doctor Strange Tsum Tsum movie poster. Isn’t he adorable!

And the entrance:

Passion and excitement is that rare magic that fuels creative work. Fortunately in this case, the Party Magic team and I had some of that magic with plenty to spare! Below is our ceiling treatment:

Since Jaja and I decided on a Tsum Tsum theme with a carnival twist, I thought it would be fun to include these hanging Tsum Tsums in the middle of a hula hoop “on fire”:[Read more…]

When I first saw the trailer of Moana, I was giddy with curiosity to watch it. Not just because it seemed to have great original music and a feisty heroine, but because of the richness of Polynesian culture that it shored up.

From just watching the trailer, and seeing the setting (island), people (tatooed, robust, black-haired tribes), and the demigod Maui, I instantly recognized the movie to be about the Pacific Islanders, a group of people that I am always interested in learning about, ever since my trip to New Zealand, that beautiful, wondrous country (of not just sheep, mind you)!

So you’d understand the excitement I had in creating Jia’s Moana party:

Moana as the theme for a party is filled with possibilities. For me, Moana is kind of like a beach / surfing / nautical party, but with elements of Polynesian (Hawaiian, New Zealander) culture, thrown in, such as leis which my client Joan gave out to all guests during the party!

Aloha! Guests were given lei’s to wear as they entered Jia’s party

The stage itself was a joy to design. I decided on a beach scene, with a baby Moana (as requested by Joan) in the off-center, framed by a pair of totem poles, Kakomoras, and Moana’s boat, and her parents. Seashells and starfishes dot the beach floor.

Moana and her loving parents

Peeking at Jia’s stage from a tiki hut

I love how the Party Magic team and I accented the ceiling, mostly with grass skirts, tropical colored lanterns, leaves, string lights, and oh, some pineapple lanterns as well!

Being the culture and history buff that I am, I just cannot write this blog post without discussing Moana’s cultural overtones!

When Disney does a movie about a cultural group, you know that they’ll do it right and nail it.

For example, in the movie, a green stone representing the heart of the island goddess Te Fiti found its way into Moana’s hands. Later on, Moana meets a demigod of the wind and sea called Maui.

The green stone is actually called pounamu, a name given to a group of stones found in Southern New Zealand. The name pounamu is of Maori origin (Maori are the native peoples of New Zealand). In fact, pounamu is actually a part of the Maori name for New Zealand’s South Island, which is called Te Waipounamu which means “the waters of greenstone”!

The heart of Te Fiti, a magical greenstone in the movie Moana

Maui, on the other hand, is a very famous mythological god / demi-god known all throughout the Polynesian Islands (I kind of think of him as the Hercules-equivalent of Polynesia). For example, there is a whole island in Hawaii with the name Maui. New Zealand’s North Island, meanwhile, is named Te Ika-a-Maui, which means, “the fish of Maui”. [Read more…]

Time flies and it seemed like March was just yesterday! The month of March always brings for me good tidings, mostly because of two things: it’s the birthday month of my husband, and it’s ICBB preschool‘s Moving Up Day!

This is the month where the Party Magic team’s dedication to their craft is put to the extreme test, as we not only styled all THREE Moving Up Day events of the preschool (which were held in Teatrino, Promenade Greenhills), but had to do this while trying to fulfill our obligations to our birthday party clients as well.

If you are the type of mom who’s tired of the usual themes, here’s a twist that I’d like to show you:

Instead of a simple “princess” theme, why not take a “higher level” look at it and consider Once Upon A Time, or Fairy Tale Characters? The good thing about approaching the usual princess theme from this angle is the huge potential it has for interpretation, and the “mashing up” of various characters into one setting.

Here is a sneak peek of what I chose to do for sweet Olivia’s party:

Storybooks abound in the ceiling of Olivia’s party

Gold leaves and vintage books create a romantic air over the guests

Geppetto’s Workshop, found in the photo-op section of Olivia’s party

Special thanks to Happy Folks Studio for doing an amazing job as always in capturing the spirit of this event!

THE CAST OF CHARACTERS AND THE DESIGN APPROACH

While it’s all great to bring out your favorite characters and just hope that they “blend” well together onstage, there are obvious limitations to the combinations of characters (hello, Pocahontas and Cinderella?). So my client, Hazel, and I brainstormed the cast of characters that we would be using for the event:

In my mind, the best way to approach this type of overarching theme is to create a subtle, more nuanced design by focusing on the setting or a particular element of the fairy tale rather than the characters themselves.

This type of approach can be seen in the invitation we designed for Hazel:

No sight of Rapunzel (just her long hair). Pinocchio’s hat is just peeking off to the right of Olivia’s name. Cinderella and Dorothy’s shoes, and Merida’s bow and arrow round up the rest of the elements. Again, no actual characters seen anywhere. This creates a subtler (and dare I say more sophisticated?) feel.

Cinderella’s Royal Ride

Another good example would be Cinderella. Just because Cinderella is part of your theme doesn’t mean that you need to have a standee of the Disney princess greeting guests as they enter the party, as this might be too “in your face”. Why not a royal carriage instead?

I also decided to add this romantic-looking book arch as an entryway into the venue.[Read more…]

OLI’S BOXSHIP: A UNIQUELY FUN AND EDUCATIONAL ACTIVITY FOR YOUR LITTLE ONE

Now that we are right in the middle of the summer season, I thought that it would be fun to talk about something relevant for every mom out there: summer activities!

Come the month of March, there is this dreaded question that every mom faces: what will my kid do during the summer?

I mean, they can’t just play with their iPads all day right?

What if I told you that there is something that the kids can do that is fun, doesn’t involve iPhones, iPads, or any other electronic device, that allows the children’s parents to spend quality time with them, AND helps the kids learn something new all at the same time?

Introducing, Oli, a crafty little quintopus (five-legged octopus) who arrives in his “boxship” bearing the most curious activities, crafts, experiments, and stories:

But wait, what does Oli have in store for us for this month? Let’s take a closer look at Sofie and Chloe’s box:

Oli is a quintopus (yep, that’s right), or a five-legged octopus. If you turn him upside down, he looks like a human hand (which symbolizes “craftiness”, or being good with your hands). Pretty neat huh!

Welcome To My World!

I'm Michelle, mother of the 2 sweetest girls in the world, Sofia and Chloe. I'm an event stylist and owner of the boutique styling shop, Party Magic. I love doing crafts, design, cooking, and anything that has anything to do with beauty and art.